The need to know how long nicotine stays in one’s system is one of the most frequent motives for asking. As a requirement of employment or as part of a health insurance evaluation, it is not uncommon for existing or potential employers to do a nicotine test on you.
Although there are many places on your body where nicotine can be found, these tests often focus on your blood, saliva, urine, hair, and nails. Although saliva swabs are the test that companies use the most frequently, other tests are also frequently performed.
You can better predict how long it will take to leave your system by understanding how nicotine from vaping is absorbed and processed by your body, or at the very least, how long it will be until the nicotine and related substances are no longer noticeable.
Describe nicotine.
Nicotine is an organic substance that is produced naturally and is obtained from tobacco plants, which are members of the Nightshade family. Although the adult lethal dose could be as high as 1000mg, which is much more than you can consume in a single puff of a cigarette or vape, it is effectively a poison.
It also acts as a moderate stimulant, much like caffeine, giving some users a headrush or a fleeting “high” sensation. The nicotine content in vape juice, also known as eliquid, can range from 0 mg to 50 mg per milliliter.
What Remains in Your System After Nicotine Use?
There is a big difference between how long nicotine from vaping stays in your body and how long it can still be easily detected.
Nicotine is very effectively absorbed by your body. You will absorb about 90% of the nicotine that is consumed when you vape. Within two to three hours, your body will have used or eliminated 50% of the nicotine it had absorbed. The nicotine that is still present lingers far longer and may be noticeable for several weeks.
Nicotine in Your Blood: For around three days after vaping, nicotine in your blood can be detected. Despite being a fairly reliable procedure, blood tests are not frequently used to detect nicotine due to the high cost of hiring medically trained testers.
Nicotine in Urine – Nicotine from vaping can be found in urine for a little while longer than it can in blood. The duration is typically four days, although it also varies on your age, general health, and fluid intake. Your body may take longer to rid itself of nicotine as you age.
Nicotine in Your Saliva – Saliva tests are more frequently utilized by employers because to their low cost and accessibility even though they are less effective at identifying nicotine than blood or urine testing. A positive result from a saliva test could persist for up to three days.
Nicotine in Your Hair and Nails – Because testing hair and nails can be challenging, expensive, and time-consuming, it is rarely done for job considerations. Scientific research is more frequently the sole field that uses this kind of testing. For anywhere between a few weeks and a few months, nicotine can still be found in hair and nails.
These approximations in timing might be impacted by numerous factors. As was already noted, aging can affect how rapidly nicotine and cotinine, which is created when nicotine enters the body, are eliminated. Additionally, studies have shown that women typically absorb nicotine more quickly than men.
And as you might anticipate, someone who has smoked or vaped excessively and frequently for a long time may take longer for nicotine to leave their system.
Describe cotinine.
Although you may have never heard of cotinine, it is crucial to how our systems process nicotine. Nicotine is anagrammed in the name, which indicates how closely related the two compounds are.
The main metabolite of nicotine is cotinine. It is frequently utilized as a biomarker for tobacco and nicotine use because it is what nicotine is largely transformed into after being absorbed by your liver. Nowadays, many tests are geared to look for cotinine in your system rather than nicotine.
Compared to nicotine itself, cotinine is simpler to detect and stays in the body longer. Its half-life, or how long it takes for 50% of the chemical to leave the body, is around 14 hours. This is around six times longer than the half-life of nicotine by itself.
Can You Quickly Get Rid of Nicotine From Your Body?
The natural process of eliminating nicotine from your body is the only effective technique to do so. Each person will experience different outcomes from increasing their water intake, getting more exercise, and eating foods high in antioxidants.
There are many nicotine detoxification solutions on the market that guarantee to eliminate all traces of the drug from your body in a few days. In order for the nicotine and cotinine to be digested and eliminated more quickly, the majority of these require accelerating your metabolism in some way. There is scant proof that these frequently pricey treatments work.
The safest course of action is to cease vaping or switch to a nicotine-free vape liquid at least 10 days prior to the test to ensure that nicotine and cotinine are undetectable with any of the most popular tests.
Vaping vs. Smoking: Nicotine
It is still unclear whether nicotine is absorbed more quickly into your system through smoking or vaping. In comparison to smoking, vaping is a relatively new practice that hasn’t received as much investigation.
While some studies contend that smoking is the most effective way to get nicotine, other studies contend that vaping delivers more nicotine. The variety of vape devices, power levels, vape juice strengths, and vaping techniques makes it more difficult to find an answer to this question.
It is probably best to presume that vaping and smoking cause the same quantity of nicotine to be put into the body and that the period of time nicotine stays in your system is comparable until there is more clarification.
Symptoms of Nicotine Withdrawal
Although nicotine withdrawal symptoms can vary significantly, they frequently include agitation, anxiety, an increase in appetite, difficulty sleeping, and loss of concentration.
Depending on how much and for how long you’ve vaped, how potent your vape juice is, your age, and even your gender, these symptoms might be moderate or severe. The consequences may not become apparent for a couple of weeks after you stop vaping; however, the first few days will be the hardest.
Conclusion
Generally speaking, your body does a decent job of digesting and eliminating nicotine from your body. Within a few hours, up to 50% will be absorbed and eliminated from your body. In 3-4 days, the leftover nicotine will be almost undetectable, and in 2-3 weeks, it will be completely gone.
The recommended course of action if you’re going to be tested is to quit vaping or smoking for at least 10 days before the test because there is no effective technique to flush nicotine from your system any faster than it occurs naturally.
There’s good news if you absolutely can’t bear the idea of going without a vape for so long. You can still vape without nicotine, which might be more advantageous than quitting abruptly.
